Ok-so I may have already posted this recipe before...but I made them again and this time they are extra good! I mean Extra EXTRA good! They are Kathleen Kings Double Chocolate Almond Cookies (again i left out the almonds-not a huge fan of nuts in my cookies-sometimes they are ok). Wanna know why they were EXTRA good this time?? K I'll tell ya!
For the cocoa powder I used my new dutch process cocoa, Extra Brutte Cocoa Powder. This stuff is awesome. Such a deep, chocolately flavor. It took these cookies to another level. Can't wait to make them again!
they made lovely little gifts too:)
I've also decided I'm going to move away from cupcakes for a while and start making cookies. It was so nice yesterday when I made them to not have to worry about making an icing for them, not have to worry about decorating them...and quit frankly I would rather have one of these cookies than a cupcake. Gasp! I know! Crazy right?
Well tomorrow we are going on our first family vacation with out little one! Guess where we're going...I'll give you a hint...
our first stop will be to visit Lou Malnati's Pizzeria... then the next day we are going to take a little drive to what I considered my home-where I grew up to get a delicious butter burger from Solly's Grille. This place is the birth place of the butter burger and I haven't had one in almost ten years so it's about time I go back and get me another!
If you haven't guessed, figured it out, or if you haven't gone to my lovely links :) ...You'll just have to wait till I post some pics tomorrow:)
I've posted the recipe for Kathleen cookies on my blog before, so you can look for it under "cookies" or you can go here for the recipe:)
This one is for all of those who love malted milk balls and who love malt in general. I mean, who wouldn't like malt?! It's simply the best! And when you put that delicious malted flavor into a cupcake..well your just pushing all the right buttons. I've made these cupcakes twice now, both times I have gotten rave reviews, especially about the frosting. It's quit possibly one of my favorite frostings ever. I got this recipe from the wonderful blog our recipe club.
The only thing I do differently with the recipe is the way I mix the ingredients together. I don't know why but the way this recipe says how to incorporate the ingredients together makes me nervous, even though I'm sure they would turn out just fine! But I am kinda weird in that when I make a cake I always add the dry ingredients into the butter/egg mixture alternating with the wet. So what I do is blend the oil, eggs, and vanilla together and I add the sour cream into the milk/malt mixture. After the eggs are blended into the oil mixture I add the dry and wet ingredients, begining and ending with the dry (I do 1/3 of the dry at a time, so you will do 3 additions of dry ingredients). So you can make these cupcakes with my mixing instructions if you are super anal like me, or just use the directions listed bellow in the recipe, because they will probably turn out just as good. Enjoy!
{natalie's super yummy Whopper cupcakes}
2 1/4 cup flour 1 1/4 cup sugar 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 1 cup milk 1 cup malted milk powder 1 cup vegetable oil 3 large eggs 1 cup sour cream 1 tsp. vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tins with cupcake liners.
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
In a small bowl, combine milk and malted milk powder, stirring to dissolve. Add milk mixture, oil and eggs to flour mixture, beating at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add sour cream and vanilla, beating just until combined.
Pour batter evenly into prepared pans and bake for 15-17 minutes. Let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool completely on racks.
Frost and garnish w/malted milk balls if desired
Malt Frosting
1 cup butter, softened 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream 1/2 cup malted milk powder 6-7 cup powdered sugar
Blue food coloring
In a large bowl, beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.
In a small bowl, combine cream and malted milk powder, stirring to dissolve. Add cream mixture to butter mixture, beating at low speed to combine. Gradually beat in powdered sugar until smooth. You may need to add more or less powdered sugar depending on desired consistency. Add 6 to 8 drops of food coloring, mix well. Add more if you would like a deeper color. Frost cupcakes, top with a Whopper-malted milk ball & enjoy!
Ok, so since it's been a while-AGAIN- I decided to treat you guys to a yummy recipe:) A SUPER yummy recipe! For a while now I have been wanting to try Bobby Flay's peanut butter caramel swirl brownies he made for a throw down against Vermont's brownie company. The Vermont Brownie Company won with their dark chocolate chevre brownies (how good does that sound?!) However, after finally trying Bobby's recipe I am wondering if there should be a re match cause this recipe is a winner!
I have never been a fan of dark chocoate, but over the past year I have started to like it more and more. These brownies definitely have a rich, dark chocolately flavor. However, instead of using bittersweet chocolate I did use semisweet. I just thought the bittersweet would have been too dark for me. The peanut butter caramel is outa this world. My only complaint with this recipe is I wish there was more of the caramel. Next time I make them I am going to double the caramel and use about 3/4 of it for the brownies. I also would suggest not over doing it on the swirling-it's best when you have bigger globs of the caramel:)
One last note-the recipe says to bake the brownies at 325, but I did read one reviews of the recipe and they said you should bump the heat up to 350. Well I just baked them according to the recipe at 325, and after 22 minutes they were no where near to being done, so I kept them in the oven bumpepd it up to 350 and they were perfect in about 6 minutes. So maybe try baking them at 350, but don't over bake! They are supposed to be a very fudgey brownie! Enjoy!
o-and one other thing, I sprinkled a little bit of fleur de sel over the top of the brownies-to die for!!
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped, plus 4 ounces
1 teaspoon espresso powder
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown muscavado sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
Directions
Bring the cream to a simmer over low heat in a small saucepan. Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan over high heat and cook, without stirring until amber brown. Slowly whisk in the warm cream until smooth and let cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and whisk in the peanut butter, corn syrup, sea salt and 1/8 teaspoon of vanilla extract until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and let cool until thickened at room temperature, about 30 minutes.
Put a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with foil, leaving an overhang on the narrow ends. Spray the foil and pan with nonstick spray.
Combine the butter, unsweetened chocolate, 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate and espresso powder in a medium bowl set over a pot of simmering water. Let the chocolate melt over low heat, stirring frequently until smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, both sugars, vanilla and salt until smooth. Whisk in the melted chocolate mixture until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat in the flour in 2 additions (the batter will be thick). Stir in the remaining 4 ounces of chopped bittersweet chocolate.
Scrape half of the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Using a tablespoon, drop dollops of half of the peanut butter caramel every 2 inches over the top of the batter. Carefully add the remaining batter and smooth over the caramel. Smooth the top and dollop the remaining caramel over the top. Use a butter knife to swirl through the batter to get a marbleized effect.
Bake until the top is set but still soft and the edges are puffed and just beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 23 to 25 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center will come out still gooey (be brave!--underbaking the brownies is one of the secrets to their fudgy texture). Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the neatest cuts, refrigerate the pan for about 20 minutes before cutting the brownies. Using the foil, lift the brownie slab out of the pan. Carefully peel off the foil and put the brownie on a large cutting board. With a large sharp knife, cut the brownies into 48 squares. (The brownies can be stored in an airtight container, at room temperature, for up to 3 days; they can also be frozen, well wrapped, for up to 2 weeks.)
Yesterday was our 4 year anniversary. 4 years! Wow-time flies when your having fun:) I remember on our last anniversary I was doing my lupron shots, and this year we have our little Eleni with us, I feel so lucky and blessed.
My parents, who are also our baby sitters, are out of town, so Eleni came on our date with us. We decided to just have a fun Salt Lake day and hit our favorite spots. First lunch at Trios. We got the rosemary flat bread which is my favorite! For my meal I got the butternut squash ravioli and Micah got the carbonara. They were both delicious.
Next we went to Hatch Family Chocolates where I got my favorite vanilla creams along with some raspberry cream chocolates and their coconut caramel. Now, I had heard that chocolate can make babies fussy if you eat it while breast feeding, but I thought "oh no it will be fine", so we then took off to minis cupcakes to grab some of my favorite cupcakes.
We got the Diva and Twisted Sister. Both full of chocolate and I ate them up. Hey it was my anniversary I could eat anything I wanted! We hung out in their Retro Cafe for a bit. It was so much fun, Eleni was in the best mood.
We then went to Orson Gygi and I grabbed a few things, then on our way home. So maybe not the most romantic annivesary but it was sure fun with our little peanut. Well...it was fun up to that point.
About 7:30 rolled around and Eleni started getting fussy so I started rocking her to sleep. She would fall asleep but fight it-start arching her back and kicking her legs, after an hour of this I just set her on the floor and she freaked out. And that's where it all began. Constant, horrible crying and screaming. It was awful. She has been so good, she has actually started to sleep through the night the past few nights and haven't had one freak out, so I knew it was the chocolate, darn it! I could tell she was in pain, that her tummy hurt. Then my tummy hurt cause I was sick to see my baby like this. I tried everything. She was screaming like I had never heard before, it was heart wrenching, finally at 11:30 (3 hours of straight crying/screaming) I told Micah he should give her a blessing, I couldn't think of anything else to do, so we said a prayer and he gave her a blessing.
He asked that her tummy would feel better and that she would calm down. I then laid with her in our bed and cuddled her up. After about 10 minutes she fell asleep. I don't know what I would do without the power of prayer and the miracle of priesthood blessings. I fell asleep too and Micah woke me up at 1:00 am because I was still in my clothes and everything. I put her in her crib and she slept till 6:30, and right now she is happily playing on her play mat.
So lesson learned, no more chocolate! That will definitely be an anniversary to remember. I'm hoping that the chocolate is out of my system and that we wont have another repeat today.
So I was meaning to post all about our anniversary yesterday but when Eleni started freaking out I just didn't have any time. But I'd like to give a quick shout out to my Hubby to tell him how much I love him:) I remember the day of our wedding like it was yesterday, one of the best days of my life. I'll never forget dancing the night away at our reception, and then later having people tell me after we left the DJ stayed because everyone still wanted to dance! I've heard stories of my dad (who is 6 foot 10) who started break dancing on the floor...wish I could have seen that:)
We've been through a lot the past 4 years, have traveled the world and have had many fun and amazing experiences, but I don't think anything we have ever done will compete with what lies ahead for us. Having a baby has been challenging and hard but also amazing. All we did yesterday was constantly take pictures of Eleni on our phone and camera, we couldn't take our eyes off of her, and when she would smile or make a cute face we would nudge eachother and say "hurry, look! She's making the most precious face!". She has brought both of us so much more joy than I think either of us could have imagined. I'm glad we got to spend our annivesary day with our little Eleni, I would have liked the later portion of the day to turn out a little differently but trust more, I've learned my lesson, no more chocolate!
Love you Micah and Happy Annivesary (yesterday:) ) Can't wait to celebrate many, many more with you!
Well I can't believe it's been almost a month ago since my last post! I bet most of you are sure sick of seeing my birth story every time you stop by:) There are a couple other blogs I check out and the girls running them have had babies about the same time as me, and they all have like 15 posts up! Why can't I keep up on my posting? Or keep my house from looking like a disaster? I often think what's wrong with me that I don't have energy like these other women or why don't I have order in my life like they do. I have been feeling like I've been in survival mode these pasts couple months, it's been difficult with a colicky baby who demands all of my time. She is getting better though. I think one day my house will be spotless, and one day I will post every single day, and one day I will have time to blow dry my hair and make it look pretty:)
Eleni had to get some shots today. I still have a knot in my stomach from seeing her so upset. I gave her some infant Tylenol and she loved it. She is snoozing right now-but I know not for long, but hopefully long enough for me to share with you guys this amazing recipe...
A few weeks ago I saw Tyler Florence make enchiladas. I have been obsessing over them ever since and finally got a chance to make them. They are delish. The roasted tomatillo sauce is so yummy and really makes these enchiladas special. They are on my make again list. Go here for the recipe. Wow! I can't believe I was able to get a post up! Finally! I'm back! Hopefully I can get back into the swing of things and you will be seeing a lot more recipes on here:)
And just cause I can't help it, here are a few pics of the little one.. Eleni loves being in this sling!
and I caught this precious photo of Eleni and her daddy-these are the moments that make living off of no sleep ok:)
Exactly a month ago I gave birth to Eleni, and as promised here is her birth story:) It's only taken me a month to get it up! I do what I can these days and when I can:) It's kinda long, but here it is.
Eleni’s Birth Story
As my due date of May 2nd past I grew anxious to meet my baby.On May 3rd I decided to have my membranes stripped, I was already 4 cm dilated and the Dr said it would most likely put me into labor within 72 hours.I went to my moms house after the stripping and walked around.A couple hours after I got my membranes striped I started getting mild and irregular contractions.I was hopeful something would happen that night but it didn’t.The next day came and I was still having mild and irregular contractions.My mom came over that night to watch American Idol with me.We began watching and my irregular contractions became a bit more regular and closer together.We decided to go for a walk.As I started walking the contractions sarted coming every 5 min.I was in complete denial.My mom insisted I go to the hospital and I kept telling her “this isn’t it, they are just going to send me home”.My mom talked to my husband and the two of them forced me to go to the hospital. So off we went.
We got our bag and I put on my I Pod listening to my hypnobabies birth guide track in the car on the way to the hospital.I was very relaxed, and excited, hoping this was it.Once we got there they brought me in a room where they would determine if I was in active labor-and I was.I wasn’t feeling any pain though from the contractions, just pressure and tightening.Sometimes the tightening and pressure tookmy breath away a bit, but still no pain.They got me settled in my room and I kept listening to my hypnobabies tracks.I lied there and reseted a while, almost napped working through my contractions.I walked the halls of the hospital for a few hours alternating with my mom and husband.It was such a special experience having my mom and husband there while I was laboring.I was very peaceful.I was the only one there doing a natural child birth so it was very quiet and I had the halls to the hospital all to myself:)
After hours of walking I had them check me.I didn’t want to know how dilated I was but they told my mom I was about 6 ½ cm.I walked again.After a couple more hours I was checked again, no progress.I decided to have my water broken.Right after it was broken my contractions picked up.Much more intense this time.It was so comforting to have Micah right by my side, holding my hand.It gave me great strength.I’ll never forget one contraction that kept building and building and right when I though it couldn’t get more intense it built even more.I used my peace cue that I was taught in hypnobabies and it kept me focused.During these intense contractions I kept repeating in my head “I’m that much closer to seeing my baby”, over and over.It kept me focused and calm.
I finally felt like I had to push, but I still had a lip of my cervix left.The nurse told me to lie down with the next contraction while she pushed the lip of the cervix out of the way.That could have been the most intense moment of my whole birthing process.I still knew I could do it, because I was doing it.
working through a contraction during transition
After I was fully dilated I was ready to push.The most intense urge to push came over me, I couldn’t believe I was there, I was almost ready to meet my baby.I pushed for 20 minutes, the pushing was intense, I don’t think I have ever exerted that much energy into anything, ever in my life and I don’t ever think I will ever again, unless it is at my next birthing time.I was so surprised at the strength I had. During those 20 minutes the nurse said “the sooner we get this baby out the better, her heart rate is dropping”.I don’t think I have ever been more scared in my life.The Dr ended up putting a monitor on her head, after that her heart rate looked fine.
After 20 minutes I asked the Dr how much longer, I didn’t know how much longer I could do it.He told me I had a choice, I would probably have another hour of pushing or else he could do something, I instantly yelled “just cut me!”And so it was.A few contractions latter I gave the biggest push, and then the biggest relief came over me, and I heard a cry.My baby was out, I couldn’t believe it!She was immediately put onto my chest, skin to skin.I grabbed her, wrapped my arms around her, it was the best moment of my life up to that point.It was so surreal, I couldn’t believe what I was experiencing.I looked up at my husband and the look on his face was just as special to see as seeing my baby for the first time.He leaned down and whispered to me how proud he was of me, and how he will do anything for me for the rest of our lives because of what I just did.I’ll keep reminding him that he said that:)
I look back at my Eleni’s birth and I can’t believe that I was able to do it, naturally, with no drugs.It was such and is such an empowering feeling to know that I did it.I had such an adrenaline rush after the birth, it was an amazing feeling.My Eleni was so alert, I am really proud of myself that I followed through with bringing her into this world how I wanted to.I feel through birthing my baby I am so much closer to my husband, and it was very special to have him help me through the birh.I definitely don’t regret doing it natural, and I will absolutely do it again.
Anyone interested in hypnobabies in Utah, and I would highly recommend it, gohere
Yesterday was such a fun day. We went up to my moms and had dinner. She made Ina's lemon fusilli pasta. It was delicious! So yummy, I can't wait to make it again. For dessert I made a key lime tart (however, I just used limes). I love this tart recipe, it's so delicious and so easy. We threw some whipped cream over the top and some raspberries. I think the raspberries really took it to another level, we are making this tart again for Sunday dinner tomorrow:) You can find the recipe for it here. Pasta recipe is bellow.
I have some great news! Eleni slept from 12-5:15 last night! It was a miracle! Her sleeping increments at night have only been about 2-2 1/2 hours, and then when she gets up I have to feed her then try to get her back down for 45 minutes or so. I've felt like I've been running on fumes, but I know it comes with being a new mommy. But she was such a good girl last night and gave me a decent nights rest! I feel like a new person today, much more rested:) I had energy today to clean my house so it no longer looks like a war zone. Cross your fingers that she will do it again tonight! :)
Lemon Fusilli with Arugula
Ingredients
nocoupons
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic (2 cloves)
2 cups heavy cream
3 lemons
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch broccoli
1 pound dried fusilli pasta
1/2 pound baby arugula (or 2 bunches of common arugula, leaves cut in thirds)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
Directions
Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the garlic, and cook for 60 seconds. Add the cream, the zest from 2 lemons, the juice of 2 lemons, 2 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until it starts to thicken.
Meanwhile, cut the broccoli in florets and discard the stem. Cook the florets in a pot of boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes, until tender but still firm. Drain the broccoli and run under cold water to stop the cooking. Set aside.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add 1 tablespoon of salt and the pasta, and cook according to the directions on the package, about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain the pasta in a colander and place it back into the pot. Immediately add the cream mixture and cook it over medium-low heat for 3 minutes, until most of the sauce has been absorbed in the pasta. Pour the hot pasta into a large bowl, add the arugula, Parmesan, tomatoes, and cooked broccoli. Cut the last lemon in half lengthwise, slice it 1/4-inch thick crosswise, and add it to the pasta. Toss well, season to taste, and serve hot.
O little Eleni, please sleep like an angel tonight! :)
I wish I could post more, I was hoping to have Eleni's birth story up by now with pictures and everything, but my recovery has been harder than I thought it would be. I'm hoping things will turn up soon. Micah is taking a huge load at school so it's been a bit stressful, but luckily I am blessed with the best mom ever-she has been taking such good care of me. She has slept over and allowed me to sleep through the night and she would stay up with Eleni. She get her when she cried, bring her to me when she needed to eat, then I could go back to sleep and she would take care of Eleni. I am so grateful to her I don't know how I could make it through these times without her.
My mom has also been making us dinner, and one night she made us Ina Garten's chicken pot pie. Talk about amazing! With each bite I took out of this amazing dish, it lifted my spirits and made me forget my stresses and the pain I was in. I can't wait till I am feeling better so I can make this myself. So here's the recipe, and be patient with me, I promise I will be blogging more soon:)
O...and just cause I can't help it, here are some pics of Eleni's first bath, which she hated by the way. She screamed bloody murder the whole way through, I don't think she will be getting too many baths:)
2 cups medium-diced carrots, blanched for 2 minutes
1 (10-ounce) package frozen peas (2 cups)
1 1/2 cups frozen small whole onions
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
For the pastry:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/4 pound cold unsalted butter, diced
1/2 to 2/3 cup ice water
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
Flaked sea salt and cracked black pepper
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place the chicken breasts on a baking sheet and rub them with olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, or until cooked through. Set aside until cool enough to handle, then remove the meat from the bones and discard the skin. Cut the chicken into large dice. You will have 4 to 6 cups of cubed chicken.
In a small saucepan, heat the chicken stock and dissolve the bouillon cubes in the stock. In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter and saute the onions over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until translucent. Add the flour and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the hot chicken stock to the sauce. Simmer over low heat for 1 more minute, stirring, until thick. Add 2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and heavy cream. Add the cubed chicken, carrots, peas, onions and parsley. Mix well.
For the pastry, mix the flour, salt, and baking powder in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the shortening and butter and mix quickly with your fingers until each piece is coated with flour. Pulse 10 times, or until the fat is the size of peas. With the motor running, add the ice water; process only enough to moisten the dough and have it just come together. Dump the dough out onto a floured board and knead quickly into a ball. Wrap the dough in plastic and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Divide the filling equally among 4 ovenproof bowls. Divide the dough into quarters and roll each piece into an 8-inch circle. Brush the outside edges of each bowl with the egg wash, then place the dough on top. Trim the circle to 1/2-inch larger than the top of the bowl. Crimp the dough to fold over the side, pressing it to make it stick. Brush the dough with egg wash and make 3 slits in the top. Sprinkle with sea salt and cracked pepper. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour, or until the top is golden brown and the filling is bubbling hot
I can't believe that this mothers day I am actually a mom! It's so sureal I can't get over it. Now that I'm a mom I am realizing everything that mothers do for their children. I am very new to this mom thing, I've only been a mom for 4 days but am already realizing the sacrifices mothers make for their children. I am so grateful to have a mom who has always put her children first. I am amazed at how much she does and has done for me. I'll never forget her walking up and down the hospital floors with me while I was in labor. I'll never forget her staying up all night with me while I was laboring and telling me I could do it and how I was doing amazing. I'll never forget her helping me push my baby out, and just looking at her gave me the strength to know I could do it. Since I've had my baby she has already made my husband and I dinner, did my laundry, and slept over to take care of our little Eleni so Micah and I could get some sleep. She is sleeping over again tonight so we can catch some shut eye. Isn't she amazing? Anyways, just had to express my love and gratitude for my mom on this mothers day. I love you so much mom! I appreciate everything you do for me.
her name is Eleni Mae Lisonbee, and she decided to come May 5th, Cinco de Mayo!
She is perfect, last night was her first night home and she even slept through the whole night! I love my little girl so much. Full birth story coming soon:)
